Top Botswana athlete Nijel Amos has been suspended from international competitions after testing positive for a banned substance, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said Wednesday.
In a statement, the AIU said Amos has been provisionally suspended with immediate effect after a sample collected from the 800m runner “tested positive for Metabolites of GW1516, a substance that is prohibited under the 2022 WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) Prohibited List as a metabolic modulator.”
“Substances in this category modify how the body metabolizes fat and GW1516 was originally synthesized and evaluated for the treatment of obesity, diabetes and other disorders caused by metabolic problems,” AIU said in a statement.
It added: “The athlete was notified of the adverse analytical finding and his mandatory provisional suspension,” the agency said.
Amos won the men’s 800m silver at the London Olympic Games in 2012.
The suspension means that Amos would miss the World Championships scheduled for July 20.
The AIU is an independent body created by the World Athletics to manage all integrity issues – both doping and non-doping – for the sport of athletics.
It focuses on issues such as anti-doping, the pursuit of individuals engaged in age or competition results manipulation, investigation of fraudulent behaviour with regard to transfers of allegiance, and detection of other misconduct, including bribery and breaches of betting rules.
JN/APA